On January 1st, 2012, a ban on all tobacco products took effect at Middle Tennessee State University. Though the ban was enacted in June, MTSU delayed implementation until this month in order to re-educate the campus community about smoking.
The president made the decision last June to make the campus smoke-free in order to "help beautify the campus and improve the overall health of its students and employees." Concerns in the past have been raised about students with asthma encountering students smoking outside of buildings.
The problem is that the ban encompasses cigarettes, pipes, cigars, chewing tobacco, snuff, and electronic cigarettes. This is despite the fact that chewing tobacco and snuff harm no one but those who choose to enjoy them, and electronic cigarette "smoke" is simply water vapor. If cigarette butts on campus are the greatest issue, why not a ban on littering instead of smoking?
How the ban will be enforced is still unclear, a video released by the administration seems to indicate that the campus community will be encouraged to report violations of the policy by their fellow community members.
